Mark woke up with a terrible toothache so he called his dentist to make an appointment. The dentist was able to squeeze Mark into his schedule, but he told Mark that he couldn’t be late, if so, he’d have to wait till tomorrow.

Mark got his toothbrush and toothpaste and brushed his teeth. It was quite painful, but he didn’t want to go to the dentist with smelly breath. He grabbed his coat and rushed out the door, locking it behind him.

When Mark approached his car, it didn’t make its usual beeping sound. Mark reached for the door handle but the door was locked. He realized that he had left his electronic key in the house. Mark rushed back to his house but in his hurry, he tripped and fell. The house keys flew out of his hand and fell to the ground a few meters in front of him.

Before Mark was able to pick up his keys, however, a big black bird swooped down and grabbed the keys with its beak. It was a crow, a type of bird that is known for grabbing shiny things and taking them back to their nest. Mark swiped to try and catch the bird, but he missed and landed face first in a giant mud puddle. Now he was covered from head to toe in mud. 

“This can’t be happening,” Mark thought, as his toothache worsened and he watched the bird disappear in the distance.

Mark didn’t have time to call a locksmith to open his house. Thinking fast, Mark remembered that his bedroom window on the second floor was unlocked. Mark grabbed a small ladder from his garage and leaned it against the house. He carefully climbed up. 

The ladder was a bit short, but he thought he could stretch out just far enough to get to the window. As he stretched out his arm, his foot slipped, and he fell off the ladder. Fortunately, he landed in some bushes so he didn’t break any bones. Unfortunately, the bushes had thick thorny leaves. Now Mark was covered with mud, dirt, and leaves, and he had scratches all over his face and arms.

Lucky for Mark, his neighbor, Tom, had just pulled into his driveway. He ran over to Mark and asked him what was going on. Mark explained the situation while the neighbor, politely, tried not to laugh. “No problem,” said Tom, “I’ll give you a ride to the dentist.”

“Are you sure?” asked Mark. “I might get your car seat all dirty.”

Tom reached out and put his hand on Mark’s shoulder. “Don’t worry about it. That’s what good neighbors are for.”